Work begins to rebuild garden of woman with MND

Members of Guernsey's rugby teams and Cannon Asset Management came down to offer help to Samantha Holland

Work has started to rebuild the garden of a Guernsey woman living with motor neurone disease (MND).

Sam Holland was left devastated after someone claiming to be a local landscaper/contractor, who has not been named for legal reasons, was employed to transform the garden in the Vale, but disappeared leaving work unfinished.

About 30 people turned out for the first day of work on Sunday to transform the garden into an accessible sanctuary, capable of coping with her gradual loss of mobility.

Members of the Guernsey Rugby Club were joined by staff from Cannon Asset Management to carry out the first work.

For Guernsey's rugby team, it was was a chance to get out of the gym and into the community

Ms Holland was diagnosed with MND in March and knew as the disease progressed she would find it increasingly hard to carry on looking after her beloved garden.

She said she was left devastated by the the previous experience which saw un-grouted tiles, uneven paving, badly laid slabs and no drainage left behind.

Her son Ben said he was was overwhelmed by the support, saying: "I asked for eight to 10 people to come and help, and more than 30 are here. It's fantastic.

"I have been away for six years living in New Zealand and, for the old rugby mates to agree to help, it's just amazing."

He decided to move home to help his mother, he said.

The work that started was expected to be a shock to Ms Holland as, while everyone was working hard, she was in hospital with a broken ankle, helpers said.

However, her son said she would be amazed to hear about how many people volunteered.

Long-time friend of Ben's and St Jacques' Vikings player Cameron Le Prevost said: "I have known Ben for a long time and just had to come and help. My girlfriend's auntie has the same thing [MND] and helping is important."

Since learning of the family’s plight, the charity Guernsey Motor Neurone (GMN) has offered to put £5,000 towards the rebuild and secured the help of local businesses to complete the revamp.

Treasurer Vito Priore, who swapped the pen used to write cheques for a spade to help, said: "I can't believe how many people have turned up.

"This isn't how we would normally be helping our service-users, but this is an exceptional case. I am speechless by the support of all these people."

The Holland family said they were seeking legal advice following their experience of the uncompleted work.